Montauk in early August is a fishery on the cusp. The summer fluke program is at its peak, the bass are on the rips at night and in the low light, and the first scattered reports of false albacore are trickling in from the south side. Water temperatures are in the upper 60s to low 70s and seas have been workable on most mornings.
What’s Hitting
Fluke are the most consistent fishery, and Montauk is producing genuine doormats right now on the structure and rubble east of the Point and around the rock piles. Striped bass are on the rips — the North Bar, the Elbow, and the south-side rips have been holding fish on the moving tide, with the best action at night and at first light. Bluefish are thick in the rips and mixed in with the bass. Black sea bass are stacked on the wrecks and the rock structure. Porgies are everywhere on hard bottom and provide easy, productive fishing. The first false albacore have shown, which usually means the fishery builds steadily through the rest of August.
Where to Find Them
Fish the rips off Montauk Point — the North Bar on the west tide and the Elbow on the east — for bass and blues. Fluke are on the structure and sand edges from the Point east toward the wrecks, and on the Frisbee and Great Eastern rock areas. Sea bass and porgies are on any hard bottom in 40 to 80 feet. Surfcasters are working the Point, Turtle Cove, and the north-side rocks at night. Albies, when they show, will be on bait pods on the south side.
Tides & Conditions
Water temperatures are 68 to 72. The rips fire hardest on the strongest part of the tide, and this week the moving water lines up well with early morning through midweek. Seas have been one to three feet with a workable window most mornings; the afternoon southwest breeze builds a chop against the tide and makes the rips uncomfortable. Fog has been an occasional morning issue.
Tackle & Tactics
Fluke on Montauk structure demand a heavy bucktail — four to eight ounces in the strong tide — tipped with a Gulp bait and paired with a teaser. Stay vertical and in contact with the bottom. On the rips, drift live eels or troll a tube-and-worm, and keep a heavy jig ready to drop on marked fish. Surfcasters should throw a bucktail or a needlefish plug on the down-tide side of the rocks at night. Sea bass and porgies want clam or squid on a high-low rig. If albies show, a small epoxy jig on light fluorocarbon and a fast retrieve is the answer.
Local Intel This Week
The Montauk Town ramp on Lake Montauk and the East Hampton Springs ramp are the practical launches. Shore anglers have access at Montauk Point State Park, Turtle Cove, and the Camp Hero rocks — wear studded boots, the rocks are lethal when wet. Fish are concentrating on the rips and hard structure rather than open water. Striped bass, fluke, and sea bass all carry season and slot restrictions in New York that change year to year — check current NYSDEC regulations and seasons before keeping any fish.
This Week’s Tip
Fishing a rip, position the boat up-tide of the break and let the drift carry you into it rather than idling into the standing wave. Bass sit in the trough on the back side of the rip facing into the current, and a bait that tumbles over the crest naturally looks like something that lost the fight with the tide. That is exactly what they are waiting for.
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